Diamonds and Guns
by SweetSass
Summary: How would you feel if everything you've ever known and loved was taken from you by flesh eating monsters? Broken? Lost? Suicidal? Not Cascade.... she's just plain pissed off... Welcome to Zombieland
1. Heavy Soul

_Mood: "Heavy Soul" -The Black Keys_

_Hi. I'm Cascade. Cascade Idaho if we want to get real specific about it. Obviously that's not my real name, there are no real names anymore… No real anything anymore. Having zombies take over can kinda have that effect._

_But it's not all bad. If one can manage to stave off insanity long enough it's actually kinda fun... in a morbid sorta way. Lucky for me I happen to be in the ass kicking business. And business is good._

The big diesel engine idled. Inside the truck, the driver gnawed nervously on her bottom lip. She had seen the brightly colored lights flip on in the other side of the valley. And if she had seen it, it meant the waves of undead wandering around LA had seen it too. Growling under her breath, she leaned forward and slammed a fist on the dash, the glove compartment popping open. "What fucking idiots would turn on Pacific Playland in the middle of the apocalypse?"

Retrieving double .45 pistols from the glove box, she inspected each gun before loading and stashing it on her person. From under the seat she pulled a long sword, carefully sliding it in the sheath across her back. Across the empty parking lot came the echoes of gunshots, lots of gunshots, then the combined screams of the horde. Cascade sneered. It was quite possible the people trapped in the amusement park were the last people on earth, besides herself, and it was terribly disappointing already knowing they were dumb as fuck.

Deciding not to delay, Cascade grabbed the 30-30 Winchester off the seat next to her, kicked open the door to her truck and plopped down on the asphalt. As loud and bright as it was at Pacific Playland, it was as dead and quiet in the parking lot. Until an air horn broke the silence. "Come on!" A strong male voice bellowed. Cascade lifted her rifle and peered through the scope. "Tallahassee's nice this time of year!" A few more toots of the horn and Cascade spotted him just as he turned on his heel and began running. The number of undead that followed him was enough for Cascade's eyes to widen. _Is he insane?_

Cascade took quick steps towards the gates, avoiding the mangled bodies that lay in front of them. She'd barely crossed inside when the man in a cowboy hat ran past her laughing uncontrollably and shooting anything that came near him. Noting the mass running behind him, Cascade stepped back into the shadows of a ticket booth and let them pass. Reaching into a pocket on the front of her jacket, she pulled out a flask, took a big swig and replaced it. She bit her bottom lip again, trying to decide if it was going to be worth it to help.

A metal clanking brought her attention back to the uninfected man. He'd jumped through one of the prize booths and was blocking himself in. The undead that surrounded him numbered well over 50 with more on their way. Bullets began to fly but she didn't get to stay and watch the show. A gurgle from behind had Cascade whipping around to the window, shooting the zombie's jaw off. Her shot attracted more attention and three of the ghouls began to stagger her way. Cascade quickly readied her 30-30 and began taking them out, only to gain even more attention from the nearby horde. They stared at her like a fat kid stares at cake. Here was a meal that wasn't playing hard to get.

"Fuck me," she muttered, getting backed up to the front door. Whether she liked it or not, she was involved now. Glass exploded from behind her and Cascade hunkered down in reflex to avoid the spray. She realized in delayed horror that the kiosk she'd been hiding against was filled with infected, their hands reaching through, heedless of the glass cutting into their flesh, wanting nothing more than to feed on hers.

Horror became terror as one of the hands caught a chunk of hair and jerked her head backwards as she tried to run. Cascade couldn't stop the panicked scream as it tore itself from her throat. For a second, it seemed the entire night froze and listened to her scream then abruptly exploded in action again.

The cowboy began shooting with renewed vigor, something manic about the way he was taunting on the zombies now. The hand on Cascade's hair gripped tighter, trying to drag her back. Reaching behind her, Cascade slid her sword off her back and chopped off the offending hand, hair and all. Shaking herself free, she stood with feet apart, ready to take on anything. The first zombie in range got a leg cut off at the knee and as he was falling, his head got separated from his shoulders and fell next to the body.

Cascade smirked. This sword made her feel like such a badass. The second zombie got his stomach separated from his back, black blood spilling out onto the concrete. Zombie after zombie fell to her sword and it wasn't long before there was a mound of bodies. Cascade barely had time to wipe the sweat out of her eyes before she was threatened again. Her arms and back burned but there was no stopping. Stopping meant things worse than death.

From across the way, she could see the cowboy had survived his ordeal and was climbing to the roof of his prize booth. Cascade couldn't bother with him. A big boy had stepped into her line of site. At least seven feet tall, he had been a monster of a man in life and in his unlife he was a titan. Blood and bile dripped freely from his open maw down his bulging belly making his shirt a warped tie-dye. Cascade wrinkled her nose, catching the stench of rotting flesh. "Gross…" she whispered to herself.

The big boy howled and charged. His first time around, Cascade managed to avoid his hands and rolled to the right. The second time she took off his left hand that had been reaching for her. Before either could move again, a gunshot sounded and the big boy fell forwards, dead. Cascade's jaw dropped and her head whipped around to stare up at the guy smiling down at her. "That one was mine!"

The cowboy frowned. "Fine! See if I help your ass out again!"

Both stood there, awkward for a moment. She didn't know about him but it'd been a while since Cascade had been in contact with any humans that weren't trying to skin and eat her. He was staring too intently at her. Ignoring her first reaction to blush and look away, she stared right back at him, lifting her chin a bit in a challenge and slid her sword back into its sheath. He was tall, he was built, and he was obviously way too used to having his own way. Smirking, he sat down, his legs dangling off the roof as he studied her and she studied back. The snakeskin jacket and cowboy hat were a thing of the past now but Cascade still looked on with appreciation. This man definitely had his own style.

"Tallahassee!" Cascade whirled in the direction of the voice, 30-30 at the ready.

The cowboy sighed. "Over here Columbo!"

From behind a stall ventured out three new people. Two girls and a boy, all looking worn out but not bad considering the numbers of the zombies they attracted. The smallest looked about 12 while the other two were early 20s. All three had their weapons pointed right at Cascade. The next few moments were tense enough to be in an old western movie. Eventually Cascade raised her right hand. "Hi."

The smaller girl smiled and copied the gesture. "Hey."

* * *

"Fuck guys, not this again." The boy breathed out with exasperation. Cascade eyed them warily. None but the boy had dropped their weapons. "Look…." He addressed Cascade, "we're not going to hurt you." As an afterthought he added, "You're not going to hurt us… are you?"

"Are you bit?" Cascade's voice came out a bit harsher than she intended and the boy flinched but shook his head negatively.

"No, we were careful."

Cascade snorted and dropped the barrel of her 30-30. "More like you were lucky." From behind the nervous looking boy, the older girl lowered her weapon, eyes still hard on Cascade. Cascade didn't blame her. Trust was understandably a big issue in Zombieland.

The boy took a few timid steps towards her and stuck out his hand. "I'm Columbus…. Ohio…" He added his state hesitantly, obviously still not used to going by that as his name. Cascade didn't move forward so Columbus slowly took back his hand and instead pointed to each of his companions. "That's Little Rock." The younger girl. "This is Wichita, they're sisters." The older girl's mouth pursed down at Columbus giving out information to this stranger. "And this… well, this is Tallahassee."

Cascade chanced a glance up to where Tallahassee was sitting and found him staring down at her. Shrugging her shoulders she sighed and looked back to Columbus. Finally sticking her own hand out she said, "I'm Cascade Idaho."

Above her, she heard Tallahassee snort and ignored it. Columbus eagerly shook her hand. "Nice to meet you Cascade. If you don't mind, where are you headed?"

Cascade shrugged. "I'm just checking shit out before going back to Idaho."

"Right…. Well, if you want…."

"Stop right there you little spit-fuck." Tallahassee's boots slammed into the concrete between bodies as he slid himself off the roof and right next to Columbus. "I got enough frickin' headaches to worry about without you adding a god damn migraine!"

"Hey!" Columbus tried drawing off Tallahassee for a private conversation without much success. Wichita followed Columbus and Little Rock followed Wichita over. Cascade merely stood and stared at the four while they discussed what should be done with her. What started out as quiet whispering quickly escalated. "She could be the last human left besides us and you're willing to let her wander off and die!?"(Columbus)

"Damn right I am! We've got enough dead weight to deal with as is!"(Tallahassee)

"Right. And you killed all those zombies over there with an invisible sword, right?" (Little Rock)

"She's going to be trouble."(Tallahassee)

"That's what you said about Wichita and Little Rock." (Columbus)

"I was right wasn't I? It wasn't my idea to turn on the biggest lightbulb in the fucking valley!" (Tallahassee)

"HEY!" (Wichita and Little Rock)

The four continued arguing until Cascade finally got fed up. Slinging her trusty 30-30 over her shoulder, she spun on one heel and started walking away, her boots making soft clicks against the cement. _Fuck this shit,_ _these people are hopeless… _She couldn't lie, her hopes had gone up when she had heard what Columbus was about to offer her. But it was a stupid irresponsible hope. Sure, people provided companionship and a back to fight against but they also could lead to very nasty things. Like when you bond with said people and then they get bit, forcing one to blow the other's head off. It was a good thing when someone was alone, unattached, uncomplicated… made things easier.

Cascade shook her head to rid herself of her thoughts and opened the driver door to her still running truck. A screaming zombie child met her face to face. "Fuck!" Cascade stumbled back a few steps as the zombie launched itself out of the vehicle towards her. Having no other option, Cascade gripped the barrel of her 30-30 and swung the butt of the rifle right into the zombie's face with a sickening crunch. The zombie shrieked and dropped to the floor, giving Cascade enough time to draw one of her .45 pistols and shoot the thing in the head. "Motherfucker…" she whispered, coming up closer to give it a good solid kick. "Hide in my truck, will ya bitch? Probably ripped the damn leather, didn't you?"

"Nice swing." Cascade gasped at the low voice that whispered behind her ear. Acting on instinct she pivoted, driving one hard punch to the ribs and then raising her elbow, bringing it down hard on Tallahassee's neck when he doubled over from the first blow. The cowboy went sprawling across the parking lot. Groaning, he tried to get himself to his feet.

"Oh shit, I'm sorry, you scared the crap outta me!" Bending down, Cascade helped Tallahassee to his feet. "I'm really not used to being around people who talk, sorry…." Looking up she found Columbus, Wichita and Little Rock standing a few feet away watching her with wide eyes. Cascade bit her lip and looked back to Tallahassee who was watching her. She couldn't figure out if it was grudging respect or growing dislike that was shining in his eyes and suddenly decided not to even worry about it. _It's not like I'm going with these people anyhow. They don't want me and it's not like I'm craving human contact…_A little voice in her head floating up to scream how wrong that thought was._ Damnit…._ She dropped her arms she had held out to make sure Tallahassee was stable. In a dead voice she said, "Like I said, sorry." She turned back towards her truck. "See ya in hell."

Tallahassee, Columbus, Wichita and Little Rock watched Cascade disappear down the road with smoke billowing out of the stacks on her truck. Tallahassee sneered after her. "Like we wanted her around anyhow."

Wichita gave Columbus a long glance as Tallahassee turned, making his way back into Pacific Playland. They could have definitely used someone like Cascade, even if she did royally piss off Tallahassee. Columbus gave her an exasperated look and shook his head. Only Little Rock still stood staring in the direction Cascade had gone.

Tallahassee kicked open the door with "Fried Twinkies" emblazoned on the glass front. He was in a foul mood and getting his ass kicked by a girl in front of three kids only made it that much worse. "Where are you, you delicious little bastards!?!"


	2. Rain

_Mood: "Rain" - Creed_

_Even before the outbreak I hated people. Okay, that sounds bad. Individually, I liked people… but as a whole, I was completely disgusted by them. For some reason the moment the individual becomes part of something bigger was the moment they quit thinking for themselves. It didn't matter what they were involved in, it didn't matter what they believed, all that mattered was they were willing to give up their independence and original thought to become part of the herd. Religion, ideals, morals all shot to hell. They were the first to go, the ones that put faith in something else before their own strength. They should have known that God can't help you here._

Cascade drove through what was left of the night. The sun was barely starting to peek its rosy head over the horizon when she pulled into a gas station in Barstow. It was time to refuel, resupply and hopefully recharge with a quick nap. She grabbed her 30-30 and scanned the area, not leaving her truck just yet. Appearances, especially peaceful appearances, tended to be quite disastrous in Zombieland. _Almost like a comic book…_ A quick movement caught her eye from the shadows. Cascade rolled down her window and propped up her rifle. With a big smile she leaned forward with a heavy hand on her horn.

Two zombies still dressed as gas station attendants stumbled from the building, running towards her car. One shot tore a gaping hole through one zombie's throat. Second shot blew off the remaining zombie's shoulder, making it stumble. The third hit its mark through the forehead and the zombie dropped heavily. Cascade lowered her rifle and frowned. An unexpected feeling of pity had welled up while she'd been killing the remnants. "Get a hold of yourself. They're nothing human left in those shells." Still she felt that tickle at the back of her throat. It reminded her of things; that there was one difference, one simple step or bite from going human to a cadaver eater.

"Sonuva bitch." Cascade kicked open the door to her truck and cautiously approached the gas station. "Being with those people made me soft and I wasn't even with them for an hour." The store stood abandoned. Cascade swung her rifle over her shoulder and began to browse up and down the aisles. Grabbing a basket she filled it with jerky, Twix, M&Ms, chips, gum, and anything else that appealed to her. A second and third basket were filled with water, pop and a 'few' cases of beer shoved to the side for good measure. Next the utility aisle: Solar blankets, gloves, matches, propane, anything that could be useful went in last basket.

Cascade shoved all the baskets by the front door and then vaulted over the counter. One strong kick broke the glass guarding the tobacco products and Cascade greedily loaded up every single pack and carton of Marlboro Reds they had. With a relieved chuckle, Cascade leaned herself back against the counter and slid down till her butt hit the floor. Lighting up she took a sweet long drag and released it with a contented sigh.

After a few minutes Cascade hoisted herself up. It was time to put everything in the truck. It took a couple trips but in practically no time Cascade had her supplies loaded. Walking back into the gas station, she made her way down the last aisle. "No way…" Rushing over to see if she was right, Cascade leaped for joy. "Fuck ya! Milkshake machine still works!"

* * *

"I spy something… red."

"Zombie."

"Yeah." Little Rock sighed. "This gets so boring!" She looked over her shoulder to where Columbus and Wichita were cuddled up asleep and made a face at them.

Tallahassee grimaced. "Fine… I spy something… Shit… Black and chrome."

Little Rock perked up to look further out over the dash. "No way…" she whispered. Glancing over at Tallahassee she was surprised when he put his foot on the brakes to park in the gas station right behind a large black truck. Tallahassee turned off the van and sat for a moment, his mouth pursed in thought.

"Stay here and watch them," he jerked his head towards the backseat, "I'll go see if she's dead yet."

Tallahassee got out of the van and walked to the glass doors, checking his gun strapped to his thigh as he went. He expected anything other than what he found in there. Cascade was dancing to invisible music. Taking another gulp of her milkshake, she shook her hips and shuffled her feet back and forth. The second he swung open the door the milkshake fell to the floor and he found himself face to face with a black pistol.

"Fuck."

Cascade's face burned red at being caught doing so embarrassing. _This guy again!_ _This was supposed to be the Apocalypse! I shouldn't have to worry about peeping toms! _She snorted and said aloud, "You can say that again. Where the hell did you come from?" Tallahassee eyed the gun and closed his mouth. They'd been through this song and dance once before. Cascade slowly lowered her weapon. "You fuckers better not be following me."

"Don't flatter yourself lady." The side of Tallahassee's face twitched slightly. "We figured you were dead."

"Not yet…"

Before it could get awkward, Cascade turned away from him and lit a smoke. Tallahassee took in the ransacked store and let out a low whistle. "You're not leaving anything to chance, are ya?"

"No." An icy look settled about Cascade's features as she internally decided being alone was definitely preferable. They're the ones who didn't want her in the first place. "And I'm done here so it's time to move on." Swift steps carried her past the cowboy and out into the California sunshine.

She noted the ugly van with painted 3's on the doors parked behind her truck. She noted the fresh streams of blood making their way to the gutters. She noticed the black birds above peering down at her, wondering when she was going to give up and die. She noticed all of this and accepted it with her hard heart but yet she balked when she came face to face with Little Rock. The girl smiled up at her with innocence still shining in her eyes despite all the chaos and horror around her. Cascade's heart thumped, recognizing something familiar in the little girl's expression. Hope.

_Oh God no. Please don't…_

"Where you headed?"

Cascade took a shaky drag off her cigarette, suddenly very perturbed and thrown off her game. "Probably hit up Vegas next." Carefully she turned to the side and walked away from Little Rock towards the attached garage. The midget followed on her heels.

"What's in Vegas?"

"Zombie strippers, duh." Cascade cruised around the garage, picking up a tire iron. Little Rock snorted behind her. Cascade cracked a little smile and scooped up a few bottles of oil. "Met this guy about a week ago who was headed there to find his sister. Said he knew this house by his that had everything. Generators, solar converters, the works." Unnoticed behind them Tallahassee had joined, leaning against the open door.

"Really?" _God damn it, even the kid's voice is fucking hopeful._

"Yeah. Figured I'd grab the shit while it was still there and working."

"Then what?"

Cascade turned and glared at Little Rock who didn't shirk at all under the gaze. This kid sure had a load of questions. She blew smoke in the kid's face to no effect. "Then I'm going to my cabin to live out the rest of my numbered days in relative peace."

Little Rock smiled and nodded affirmatively. "That sounds really nice. It… it sounds safe…"

_SONUVA GOD DAMN BITCH! I KNEW THIS WAS GOING TO FUCKING HAPPEN! STUPID MOTHERFUCKING COW TIPPING BASTARDS!!!_ Her face must have clued them in to her inner distress because Tallahassee finally stepped forward and grabbed Little Rock's elbow.

"Quit bothering her. She don't want us, we don't need her." He turned Little Rock towards the door connecting garage to gas station. "Go find something to eat kid." Little Rock threw Cascade a heartbreaking look over her shoulder as she sullenly followed Tallahassee's order. The guilt began boiling in Cascade's stomach.

"I understand ya know."

Cascade raised an eyebrow in questioning.

"Not wanting to get tied down. All they do is slow you down. Can't even take care of themselves." Tallahassee spoke quite frankly but there was no denying the affection in the words. Affection for the three who slowed him down, who made his life more endangered. Cascade's guilt tripled. Tallahassee popped his neck lazily. "But you know, they do have part of it right… the part about what separates us from them." Not looking or even caring if Cascade was listening he continued, "They're different because they care. They've turned their weakness into strength and I'll be damned if I ever let anything happen to them. So just pack your shit up and have fun in your fucking cabin."

The guilt fairly exploded at that point. At one time in the not so distant past she could have been like them, been part of her own motley little patchwork family. They were long gone now and Cascade had thought the opportunity lost. She flung her cigarette away from her in disgust, avoiding the cowboy's eyes. _They're going to get killed, or worse, get me killed. They're going to be annoying, I can already tell, especially that little girl. They're going to eat all my food and fuck with my shit._ She risked a quick glance at the door Little Rock had disappeared through. _But they're human and damned if we aren't already an endangered species…_

"Fine." Cascade took her prizes from the garage and walked to her truck. Tallahassee tailed her.

"Fine what?"

"Fine you idiots can come with me. I got rules though."

"That's OK!" Little Rock jumped up from where she'd been spying, full grin on. "Columbus has more rules than you can believe! We're used to it!" Her wide eyes glanced to Cascade's truck. "Can I ride with you?"

Cascade's eyebrow twitched. "Fine."


End file.
